The English chaps over at AutoCar got the chance to put two of the greatest modern sports car ever made in a head to head competition. In one corner weighing in at 3175 pounds is the Porsche 911 GT2 powered by a 530 HP twin turbo flat six sending 505 lb-ft of torque exclusively to the rear wheels.
Representing the good old U.S. of A. is the greatest affordable super car ever made the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 with a 638 HP supercharged 6.2 Liter small block V8 under the polycarbonate window in the forward facing hood laying the power down through a pair of 335 series 20 inch rubber. So who is your money on? Germany or America?
The American tuners Specter Werkes have just come up with the perfect addition to any C6 Corvette, their GTR performance kit. For only $34,995 Specter will build you a custom wide body Chevrolet complete with suspension upgrades and a 535 HP Matrix II LS3 V8. To start of with the GTR is 4.5 inches wider than a regular C6 Corvette and 1 inch wider than the factory hot rod Corvette Z06.
Specter Werkes replaces every body panel except the roof and rear hatch with a set of hand crafted composite pieces. Each car will be completely redesigned, repainted and reassembled with the new wild wide body kit at Specter Werke’s facility in Troy, Michigan. The C6 Corvette GTR is powered by Specter’s smog compliant Matrix II power plant. The package increases displacement from 6.2 to 6.8 Liters thanks to a new strengthened crankshaft along with a few other forged pieces to give the rotating assembly a 4 inch stroke. The small block breathes easier thanks to high flowing intake, a set of stainless steel long tube headers and a Corsa stainless steel exhaust. The end result is 535 HP and 530 lb-ft of torque.
Aside from the complete redesign, the GTR is dressed up by a set of Forgeline VR3P rims measuring in at 19 by 11 inches up front and 20 by 12 inches out back. The alloys are wrapped in sticky Michelin Pilot Sport 2 Zero rubber and house a 15 inch Stoptech big brake kit that is clamped down on by 6 piston calipers. The Specter Werkes Corvette C6 GTR is truly a unique machine that takes the American performance icon and turns it into a true blue super car, the radical exterior rivals that of the lexan hooded ZR-1.
After a series of Ferrari, Lamborghini and McLaren F1 super cars catching fire, today tragedy strikes home, because it was an American icon of affordable speed that suffered the flaming fate of a group of unknown arsonists in the Ukraine. The fire left the front end as an unrecognizable pile of molten fiberglass and a front cross member, not even the LS1 could be saved from the American super car.
It seems that not only the streets car are catching on fire lately! The same flaming fate happened to this Chevrolet Corvette driver at a Sports Car Club of America event at Elkhart Lake’s Road America. Whatever it was that came loose underneath the car to start the mishap is still a mystery. What we do know is that unaware his fiberglass bodied race car was burning and his tires had melted, the driver when full speed into the turn and well just follow the link to see the slideshow.
Motor Trend has ben given top clearance to put the 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 up against an F/A-18 Hornet being flown by a seasoned Blue Angels pilot. Both driver and airman get a feel for each other’s machines before putting them to the final test. Who won? Check the video to find out.
For all of the hot water GM has been embroiled in these days, the company can take comfort in knowing that its Corvette franchise is doing pretty well. It comes as no surprise then that GM is taking advantage of this situation by increasing the price of the 2010 Corvette ZR1 to $109,530 – a price hike of over $2,910 from the 2009 version.
While GM understands that the price hike might turn off some people from purchasing the 2010 ZR1, a price hike of a little less than $3K isn’t that much considering you’ll be spending over $100K anyway. Besides, we’ve heard from a number of people – most specifically, Corvette Blogger – that dealers have already pre-empted Corvette’s move in jacking up the price of the 2009 Corvette by over $10,000. So it’s not like GM is doing anything out of the ordinary and when you’re a manufacturer that was this close to dropping your production curtains, you’ll take any form of added income any way you can get it.
Chevrolet has just revealed an all-new image gallery featuring their latest edition of America’s favorite sports car, something that is evident by the vehicle’s 1.5 Million unit production run, the Corvette. General Motors has just announced that the Corvette Grand Sport will be priced starting at $55,720 for a hardtop and $59,530 for the convertible.
The Grand Sport is powered by the familiar LS3 6.2 Liter V8 making 430 HP. What differentiates the GS from the standard model is an upgraded suspension, wider fenders that house the wider tires and larger brakes for when bringing everything to a halt becomes priority number 1. Check out the image gallery below.
This American racing icon was one of the first in a series of innovative racecars created by the great Corvette racer John Greenwood back in the early 1970s. This particular Corvette is distinct from any other fiberglass bodied sports car you would have seen at the time, due to its wide body. The design worked so well that the “slab sides” were later copied by the Porsches and BMWs running in the same IMSA series, the ultimate form of flattery on the racetrack.
Typical for racing, every form follows a function, and the wider rear section not only allowed for wider rubber, but also the addition of a set of coil-overs to do most of the suspension work, while a single factory leaf spring was left in place to pass tech inspection. The openings in the back were very good at venting hot air while the forward facing sides were designed to create down force. The engine is an all-aluminum big blocks with cross-ram intakes and Kinsler fuel injection. The V8 measures 427 cubic inches and makes 715 HP.
This legendary Corvette will be auctioned off at the 9th Annual Russo and Steele ’Sports and Muscle at the Marriot" auction. It was designed by John Greenwood of Troy, Michigan, the Greenwood Corvette is one of the most significant cars ever built by Chevrolet. Initially called the Batmobile by the automotive press, the car first turned a wheel in competition at the 1974 IMSA Road Atlanta where it was driven by John Greenwood and Mike Brockman.
Today marks a momentous occasion for bow tie fans around the world. Despite GM’s current economic situation, and the automotive market’s turn towards more compact fuel efficient vehicles, America’s favorite sports car is still going strong. For over 60 years Chevrolet has been producing the Corvette using the latest in high performance technology and then selling them at a price that any hard working American looking for a fun ride can afford. It was on May 28th when the 1,500,000th composite bodied sports car rolled off the assembly line.
What was interesting, is that this white Corvette had a red interior and a black convertible top, just like the original Blue-flame six powered car back in 1953; the 500,000th model built in 1977 also featured a white on red combination, just like the millionth Corvette made back in 1992.
What is more impressive is that considering the Corvette’s only domestic competition comes from the Dodge Viper. Chevrolet is cleaning house, especially when you consider that to make 1.5 million vehicles in 60 years, which means an average of 25,000 units per year. Chrysler on the other hand, has only sold about 25,000 Vipers since they began retailing the car back in 1992.
Chevrolet revealed their Corvette Grand Sport model back in April. It was then that American automaker let the car buying public in on all the features that would set the Grand Sport apart from all other Corvette models. Things like the wider fenders, Z06 style splitter and rear wing, staggered wheel setup with unique 18 inch rollers up front and 19 inch rims in the back wearing 325 series rubber, housing 6 and 4 piston calipers respectively. The only thing that General Motors didn’t let us in on was the price.
It has just been announced that the Corvette Grand Sport coupe will retail for $55,720 while the drop top will set you back a couple thousand more at $59,530. The 2010 Grand Sport can be ordered with a host of trim packages, ranging from 1LT to 4LT and will be available in four different exterior colors and all will include two tone seats with special Grand Sport embroidery. The standard LS3 is untouched from the base model, the Grand Sport is powered by the familiar 6.2 Liter V8 making 430 HP (436 HP with two-mode exhaust). What differentiates the GS from the standard ride is an upgraded suspension, wider fenders to house the wider tires and larger brakes to bring everything to a halt.
The Corvette Grand Sport should become an instant collector’s item for bowtie fans around the world. Hopefully there will be even more special editions of America’s favorite sports car in the future if GM can get through their current Chapter 11 hearings. Luckily Chevrolet is one of the core brands being spared in the bankruptcy so the Corvette should live on; at least until the CAFÉ standards take effect in 2012.
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